I want to take a moment to say hello to everyone that reads this fantastic site. My name is Barry, but you may see me pop up as Hawk1010. Either way, same person. I am a new writer for NintendoFuse and I wanted to take this opportunity to properly introduce myself.

For starters, I am an opinionated person. What I mean by that is I am not afraid to speak my feelings and give my outlook on many gaming topics. What this also means is that unless specifically stated, what I write will be my opinion. I may share a different view than some of you, and all I ask is that you respect my opinion as I will respect yours. I love debating and when it comes to the gaming industry, I will gladly speak my peace. Just keep it civil, no name calling or insults.

Now a little background so you can get the gist of where I am coming from. I have been a gamer my entire life (all 30 years). I was born into a household with an Atari 800 and a Commodore 128. I sadly didn’t own an NES until much later but I played one every day after school thanks to my friends having one. To me, there was no better after school activity than trying to find the next dungeon in Zelda 1 or attempting to locate a new hidden area of Metroid. Since back in the 80s, we didn’t have the internet, it made each discovery that much more entertaining.

As I got older, I grew up with Nintendo. I stayed “loyal” if you would to playing only Nintendo games (with a few Genesis at certain friends’ houses) till mid GameCube days. At that time, I was in college, had some extra money, and began purchasing other systems to play the games that they offered. I would say that growing up I was what one would consider a Nintendo “Fanboy.” However, now I look at that term and scoff at it. I don’t think we really need to fight wars with each other over which system is “better”. Especially when that “better” is completely subjective. Now I am happy to call myself a “gamer”. What that means to me is that I enjoy the best games, regardless of platform, and embrace each new experience as my retinas soak it all in.

As I continued to get older, I started to really embrace my gaming passion and it became more than just a hobby. I began to truly be a game and system collector. Thankfully, my fiancée embraces my love as well and allows me to continue to fill rooms in our house with games, systems, figures, and posters. One day I’ll try and post a collection video if such a demand for one appears.

So I guess that brings me to today, where I was given a wonderful honor to join NintendoFuse as a writer and hopefully one day, appear on more Podcasts. Why NintendoFuse if you consider yourself a “gamer” across all platforms you may ask? Well, regardless of what console I may be playing or what game currently has captivated my attention, in the end of the day, I’ll always have a soft spot for Nintendo. I want them to succeed as a world without Nintendo would be a sad one in my opinion. I purchase every Nintendo release and play through each game like I’m 10 again waking up early on a Saturday morning to discover the next dungeon.

As for this site, I do plan on providing reviews to some games (as I get around to them) in addition to writing editorial pieces on Nintendo in the industry. I will also post any news I come across if it hasn’t been posted already. Maybe one day I’ll be given that exclusive news topic to cover.

Being a “gamer” across every platform, here’s my current titles that I’m playing and what’s in the cards for the immediate future. Obviously this is time sensitive and can change as early as tomorrow. Currently I’m playing through “Tales of Vesperia” (Xbox 360), “Animal Crossing: New Leaf” (3DS), “Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D” (3DS), “Game & Wario” (Wii U), and “Final Fantasy XI” (PC). In the cards are “Project X Zone” (3DS), “Tales of Xillia” (PS3), and “Pikmin 3″ (Wii U).

It probably isn’t hard to see that my favorite genres are RPG, Adventure, and Platformers, based on the games I’m playing. I’d say my favorite franchise would have to be Zelda followed by Final Fantasy. But if you’re a fan of JRPGs and plaformers, I’m sure we’ll get along great. I will say that my least favorite genre is Shooters (first or third person) and I do feel they have over-saturated the market. But that’s a discussion for another time.

If you’d like to follow me, I’m on twitter @HawkHellfire. My Nintendo Network ID, Xbox Live Gamertag, and PSN name are all Hawk1010 (I try and keep it simple). My 3DS friend code is 1418-6718-0679. On Disqus and on our forums I’ll be posting as hawk1010.

I look forward to writing for NintendoFuse and look forward to your feedback. Thank you again to the awesome staff here for accepting me.

~Barry

About the author:

Barry has been a Nintendo fan since ’85 when he first played Super Mario Bros. on a friend’s NES. Since then he owns every Nintendo console. He’s also an avid Video Game collector and hast most consoles from every generation including a mini museum in his house dedicated to them. His favorite genre of games is Role-Playing. He loves both JRPGs and WRPGs as long as there is a great story to hook him in.

Barry has been part of the NintendoFuse team since June 2013. He first was a regular reader of the site for over a year until he finally called into the Podcast one night. After he felt the chemistry he had with the rest of the team, he was given the honor of joining the NintendoFuse family. You’ll also find Barry on NintendoFuse’s Pod-casts, both in vocal and video form!

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Hey Barry, welcome to the site! Thanks for the intro post. I’ll go follow you on Twitter now and add you to my Wii U and 3DS. I look forward to your contributions to our site :)!

hawk1010

Thanks Jeremy! Looking forward to writing some editorials!

http://coffeewithgames.com/ coffeewithgames

As long as your opinions are based around real world events, facts, history, I shouldn’t have a problem. BUT, if you try to tell me the world is flat, and ignore the obvious just because that’s your opinion…BEEF!

Like you though, I do game across multiple platforms, and my current gaming choices are Wii U, Wii, PC, PlayStation 3 (PS3 is collecting dust right now though, and needs to be moved to a new location), and then the older consoles still around as well.

As for, “I’m playing through… “Animal Crossing: New Leaf” (3DS)” LOL! Any Animal Crossing fan knows you’re kidding, and what you meant was “It’s taking over my life, please help me!”

Was a fan of the Wii version, and I’ve been hearing good things New Leaf.

My NNID is Coffees (I’ll try to add you to my list later tonight), and I just followed you on Twitter as well.

hawk1010

Hey, thanks for the reply. Of course opinions based on real world facts, etc. Wouldn’t just spout nonsense without something to back it up. Was just stating that because more often than not I see people post opinions as facts and then get upset when someone disagrees with them. Just saying that I will respect everyone’s opinions as long as they respect my own, but in my editorials, I will be stating my opinions (based on facts).

I love being able to play the best on all fronts by having multiple consoles. And like you, my PS3 is collecting dust (didn’t get Last of Us, waiting on it till I have less of a backlog) but will be dusted off next month for Tales of Xillia.

You’re right about Animal Crossing: New Leaf. I played the GCN original (original in the states since we never got Animal Forest on N64) for over a year without missing a day. Messed around with Wild World a little and while I have City Folk, never booted it up. New Leaf has taken over but because I share my town with my fiancee, more often then not she’s stealing the cart for her 3DS so it allows me time to play other games lol. That’s why I put that I was playing through it along with other games. New Leaf is excellent though and I highly recommend it.

Thanks for the follow on Twitter, I followed you back. Will add you to my Nintendo Network as well!

http://coffeewithgames.com/ coffeewithgames

“New Leaf has taken over but because I share my town with my fiancee, more often then not she’s stealing the cart for her 3DS so it allows me time to play other games lol.”

Haha! I warned another guy about that, because he has two 3DSes and I said his wife might steal the game away to play it on the other 3DS if she tried it out, and to keep the game away from her.

hawk1010

It’s so true. Thankfully we worked out a system so we each get time to play every day while splitting costs on town upgrades. So far it’s working out well lol.

http://www.wiinintendo.net Jeremy Hardin

I’m actually planning on buying ACNL in the next few days. I’ve never played any of the games in the series. My biggest concern is that I can’t play every day, and when I do have time, it might only be for 10 minutes at a time. Is that enough time to get things done and enjoy the game?

http://coffeewithgames.com/ coffeewithgames

Congratulations, your life will be over and complete at that moment.
It doesn’t matter if you THINK you can’t play it every day, and that you ONLY have 10 minutes…

I’ll be looking for your next post here in about a month, or two…after July 2014.

http://www.wiinintendo.net Jeremy Hardin

Ha ha! See you then! Actually, my time will be quite limited as two new developments have taken place in my life. First, my wife and I are expecting baby # 3 here in November – another boy!

To top it all off, I just put in my two weeks notice, I’m starting a new job after 6 years at my current place. This means I won’t have anywhere near the free time to play games and post, which is what I’m doing right now

hawk1010

Congratulations Jeremy! You guys have to be excited.

Coffeewithgames is right though, you’ll find time. Even if it’s only for a few minutes at a time. That’s the nice thing about Animal Crossing, it runs in real time and you can actually customize your town the way you like. We usually play later at night so we put in a night ordinance so now all business stay open till 12-2 which gives us time. If you can only play in the morning, you can do that too. You can even schedule appointments with your fellow villagers at specific times that are good for you.

It’s not a grind game. You won’t play it for 8 hours at a time. It’s a marathon. You won’t truly finish with it for at least a year and there’s no rush. Plus it’s something you and your wife can play together (2 carts so you each have a town and you can play at the same time, or 1 where you live in the same town and work together for the common good). It’s also a great gateway game and since you can have up to 4 humans in one town, your two other kids can play with you too when they get old enough.

I do recommend watching any videos (especially video reviews) if you’re not sure. Just so you get a visual look at what you’re in for. Enjoy your time playing if you get it!

http://www.wiinintendo.net Jeremy Hardin

Thanks Barry! Yes, we are excited and of course a bit stressed to be honest. However, we’ll do just fine :). As for the games, well, my wife doesn’t have the time to play, nor does she have much interest in games (other than Just Dance or Wii Sports), so ACNL will be all mine :D.

I will absolutely setup some ordinances that work around my schedule. I have watched multiple video reviews, read multiple reviews, and watched many player diaries of ACNL. I was put off by the visual style at first, but it’s grown on me.

I look forward to trying it out when I get around to picking it up. I’m glad to know it can be enjoyed, even in short bursts of 10 minutes or so. I also like the idea of how relaxing it is. There is no end, there is no rush (unless I choose to make it so.)

Thanks again!

hawk1010

Let me know if you decide to pick it up. We can visit each other. I can bring you some fruit to help you make some quick money early on. Your starter fruit is the cheapest to sell in your own town, but if you sell fruit you can only get from visiting other people or the island, they you can make a little more money. Plus it makes your town a little more colorful lol

http://www.wiinintendo.net Jeremy Hardin

Thanks Barry, will do. I appreciate the offer, as I’m sure I’ll need a LOT of bells to progress.

http://coffeewithgames.com/ coffeewithgames

Oh snap! A new Bean!? Congrats! I hope the transition goes smoothly to the new job as well, and you can get settled in and used to things at it before the new one arrives.